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"Top Chef All Stars" Episode 11: Something fishy is going on here
The contestants head to the kitchen to discover Paula Dean, the “queen of southern cooking.” The Quick Fire challenge involves deep-frying. Tiffany is delighted and can feel that $5K prize burning a hole in her pocket.
Dale, the greedy American goes for beef wrapped oysters. Antonia admits to her love of many things fried. She grabs for the shrimp and avocado for a fried salad. Mike decides to use the “oyster” portion of a chicken leg as a play on fried oysters. It seems he and Richard were discussing the dish earlier in the day and it stuck with him.
Richard chooses to season mayonnaise, dip it in liquid nitrogen so it will coagulate and then deep fry the whole thing. Carla’s head is spinning as usual. She is afraid her battered fish sat too long before she placed it into the fryer. Tiffany decides on fried chicken wings and pickles.
At the judging, things go well for everyone, well almost everyone. Carla’s batter is too heavy, but that’s not the main event. As Richard listens to Mike’s dish description, he realizes it sounds very much like one of his dishes he jotted down in his notebook. He also knows that Mike has seen it. Richard cries foul, “plagiarism,” and he’s none too happy.
Dale’s flavors didn’t wow Paula. Carla’s hushpuppies were heavy and although the judge felt Antonia’s dish was the best, she only plated one, not two servings. That took her out of the running by default. Tears welling, Antonia kissed the $5K goodbye.
Richard’s fried mayonnaise with fried bacon was a hit. Mike’s presentation received high marks, too. Antonia is declared the unofficial winner, but the prize money will go to Mike. Richard’s hair stands even more on end and Mike gloatingly remarks, “thanks for the inspiration.”
Louisiana’s Chef John Besh, from “August” is introduced and announces the Elimination challenge will be feeding 300 guests gulf fish for a charity dinner he and Paula are hosting. The chefs will require some extra help in this endeavor, so in pop Spike, Tiffani F., Angelo, Fabio, Marcel and Tre. Antonia is worried but chooses Spike and crabs. They pair up and off to the market the group races.
Back at the homestead, Antonia spills the beans about Mike ripping off Richie, but Mike is undaunted. He won and is $5K richer pre-tax of course. He makes a couple snide manhood remarks, but may know underneath he now has a “Chef Law” target on his back.
With two and one half hours to prep, the kitchen is buzzing. The pressure is on and it’s showing. Mike is needling everyone. Marcel keeps insisting Tiffany use the shrimp heads for the base. She finally tells him “no,” to Dale’s delight.
They head into the Greater New Orleans Foundation’s Gulf Coast Oil Spill event with 30 minutes to pull it all together. Angelo and Dale scramble to finish what didn’t get done in the kitchen. Richard knows he’s taking a risk using pulled pork to compliment his seafood. Fabio takes instruction like a master su chef and the two seem to work well together. Tiffany tells Marcel what to do in no uncertain terms and for once, he complies without aggravation. Carla is convinced she’s a goner and waves goodbye to redemption. I guess the fried fish dish needed a bit more fine-tuning. Could it be strike two for this recipe or her final out? Mike and Tifanni F. bang out their meal with barely a peep.
Jonathan Waxman is one of the guests. Although he isn’t judging the contest, you know he’ll have something to say. Up first is Mike and Tifanni F.’s dish of grit-crusted shrimp with sour cream and chive potato. Both John and Paula enjoyed the tasting and Tom adds the dish has a clean taste. Richard and Fabio have their first post honeymoon squabble over plating the judges’ dishes. The crispy snapper and pulled pork get a thumbs up from the pros. Carla runs out of honey glaze and tasks Marcel to make another batch. Does she taste it? Nope. Her fried grouper with collard greens and chow-chow picu is clearly going to land her in the bottom three. Kindly diners even let her know they were not keen on the dish. Handwriting meets wall?
Tiffany’s honey glazed shrimp and grits isn’t a judges’ favorite either. With varying opinions, it seems she may end up on the block as well. Dale is scurrying and it’s all Angelo can do to keep him from becoming a human reduction in his own saucepan. His amberjack stew with creole mustard croutons is a bit too mustardy and the potatoes not cooked through. This is hardly a good omen. Antonia serves up blue crab cakes with jalepeno and andouille relish. She knows the dish is good and indeed it is well received.
Richard, Antonia and Mike are called out first. They have the top dishes and as the blood returns to their faces are praised for individuality and great flavors. Paula teases Mike with her southern charm, admitting the grits coating on the shrimp was genius. Mike’s face was precious as he turned beet red. John handed accolades to Antonia for the flavor and balance of her dish. Only one winner allowed and this challenge went to the chef who provided the best balance, Richard. He’ll be heading to Barbados and will be inviting Fabio to join his family on the trip. What a class act.
On the bottom half of the equation, Tiffany can’t defend her mealy shrimp, since Marcel cooked them. Still, she’s in charge and remains responsible for her creation. Paula felt the sauce was too sweet and that was a turn off. Dale admits that one batch of stew served to the judges was undercooked. He offered no excuses and I expect his fingers and toes were crossed in hopes of survival. Carla got criticism for over spicing and for lack of complimentary components. In each dish, the flavor of the fish was lost to bad seasoning. It’s anyone’s game to lose on this challenge.
So which of the six will head out the door? Dale is asked to pack up and go. He leaves with a heavy heart, but at least $30K in the black. In season four, Dale recognized he took his frustrations out on his fellow competitors and worked hard to turn his personal reputation around.
“I know I’m leaving a better person. I know I’m leaving a better chef.”
While his experience in the Top Chef kitchen is over, I suspect this will not be the last we hear of this talented man. Thanks Dale, it was a great ride.
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